HAWKS BOUNCE BACK TO CLAIM 2017 OCAA BRONZE MEDAL
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Humber | 20 | 19 | 24 | 19 | 82 |
|
Niagara | 10 | 21 | 29 | 19 | 79 |
SCARBOROUGH, ON: The Humber Hawks men's basketball team came out strong early and then hung on late to defeat the Niagara Knights 82-79 to earn the OCAA bronze medal. Both teams entered the game by way of tight championship semi-final losses on Friday night, but the two squads fought to the last few seconds to grab a podium spot.
Going into the game, the Knights had won both regular season contests between the two teams.
The fact that Humber played the 6:00 pm game, and the Knights the later 8:00 pm game on Friday, seemed to favour Humber early. The Hawks, who had the fresher legs, ran out to a quick 20-10 lead in the first quarter. Two-time Hawks Player of the Game Tyrone Dickson was the catalyst, leading both teams in scoring and rebounding.
Niagara turned things around in the second frame, outscoring Humber by two points, but they went into the dressing room down eight. At the break, it was Dickson leading all scorers, with 10 points. The Knights Alex Elliot led his squad, with 9.
The third quarter was the oddest of the game. Humber extended their lead further into double digits and led by 15 at one point. What made the frame weird, was that Niagara roared back and actually won the quarter 29-24.
As they did in the third, Humber took the lead into double digits again during the fourth, and actually led by eight with less than a minute to go in the game. After a couple of turnovers and a big three by Lequan Hylton, Niagara cut the lead to three with less than 10 seconds to go. Another turnover gave the Knights a chance to tie and force overtime, but the ball rimmed out and Dickson corralled the rebound to run out the clock.
Humber's Dickson received his third straight Hawks Player of the Game award, as he grabbed his third straight double/double. He finished with game highs in points (22) and rebounds (12). CJ Bennett was the only other Hawk in double figures, with 13.
Niagara's Player of the Game Alex Elliot led the Knights with 15 points. Four other Knight's players reached double figures.
Humber's Tyrone Dickson was selected to the Championship Tournament All-Star team.
